Cars go slow at Havana dealer

In one dealership Wednesday, the four sales people equaled the available cars. They sat around gossiping, playing solitaire on their computers, or staring out at giant waves smashing against the seaside Malecon.

"We haven't sold a car in over a month," said one dealer, a uniformed woman in her late 30s. "Not a single car."

The inactivity isn't because of the world financial crisis. Cubans need government permission to buy a car, and few can get it. Fewer still can actually afford to buy one. Even if they could, they'd be hard-pressed to go anywhere. Average wages are about $20 a month. A full tank of gas costs twice that.

"Cubans come in to look," the dealer said. "You have farmers from the countryside who work hard and can afford to buy a new car but it's just not allowed. They come and look around, then leave."

At present, vehicles are divided into two categories: those registered before 1959, and those after the revolution. The old American imports from the '40s and '50s are viewed by the state as relics from the capitalist past and can still be bought and sold privately.

Even if President Raul Castro -- who is driven around in a black BMW -- does ease the rules on car ownership, few would benefit. With average wages of about $20 a month, a car is out of reach for most people. All post-1959 cars must be bought through the state, which imposes a 100 percent mark-up.

At a Havana dealership, a dusty 2008 Citroen C5 was marked at $60,000, a 2008 Kia Picanto was $16,000.